François d'Agincour (1684-1758) was a French composer, organist and harpsichordist. Although he was overshadowed by his contemporaries such as François Couperin and Jean-Philippe Rameau, his surviving keyboard works offer a fascinating insight into the refined and artistic French organ tradition of the early 18th century.

D'Agincour was organist at Rouen Cathedral for over 40 years and also held royal office, which gave him access to France's finest instruments and a cultivated musical environment. His only surviving organ collection, Premier livre d'orgue (1733), contains a series of pieces divided into suites according to church keys and in keeping with the liturgical customs of the time. Each suite contains various movements - including Plein jeux, fugues, récits and dialogues - which correspond to certain parts of the Catholic mass.

His music reflects the elegance and clarity characteristic of the French classical organ school, with its emphasis on ornamentation, timbre and registration. D'Agincour skillfully exploits the tonal possibilities of the French classical organ, composing pieces that require prominent solo stops such as Cromorne, Tierce and Cornet. Although his music is structurally conservative, it reveals a personal voice characterized by harmonic finesse, rhythmic vitality and melodic ingenuity.

Although his output is modest in comparison to others, d'Agincour's organ works exemplify the height of French classical style just before it began to give way to more gallant and classical idioms. Modern interest in historical performance practices has led to a new appreciation of his music.

Recorded by Chikako Nishikawa on the Andrea Zeni tribune organ in the Chiesa Parrocchiale dei SS. Giuseppe e Lucia in Santa Lucia di Budoia, Italy. After studying in her native Japan, Chikako Nishikawa went to Europe to study in Zurich, Freiburg and The Hague and was a finalist in several international competitions. Most recently, she studied organ with a focus on early music with Federico Del Sordo at the Pontifical Institute for Sacred Music in Rome (postgraduate studies) and with Stefano Molardi in Lugano.